Liz Ruskin, Alaska Public Media
Liz Ruskin is the Washington, D.C., correspondent at Alaska Public Media. Reach her at lruskin@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Liz here.
FEC Hits Sullivan Campaign With $3k Fine
The Federal Election Commission slapped Sen. Dan Sullivan’s campaign with a fine of nearly $3,000 for failing to disclose donations. The total amount of the donations in question comes to just over $25,000. Most -- if not all – of them appear to be from out of state.
The Gray Eagle Has Landed… In Fairbanks
The U.S. Army has decided to base nine Gray Eagle drones at Fort Wainwright. The delegation says 128 military personnel, plus family members, will begin moving to the area next month.
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Alaska Senators Vote to Reform Patriot Act
The U.S. Senate today voted to curtail the National Security Administration’s collection of bulk phone data. Sen. Lisa Murkowski was an early sponsor of the reform. Sen. Dan Sullivan says he became convinced the bill was a good revision to the controversial parts of the 2001 Patriot Act.
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Rep. Young’s Fisheries Bill Passes House
A bill to reauthorize the Magnuson-Stevens Act passed the U.S. House this evening, largely on party lines. Alaska Congressman Don Young says the bill makes practical revisions to continue a law that has restored the health of America’s fisheries. Opponents says it weakens environmental law.
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U.S. House Votes to Sell Midtown Lot to Muni
The House today voted to sell a 9-acre lot in Anchorage to the Municipality, at fair market value. The property at 40th and Denali Street, once intended for the National Archives, is one of the largest undeveloped lots in Midtown.
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Alaska LNG Gains Milestone With Export License
The federal Energy Department announced today it will license Liquified Natural Gas exports from Nikiski, even to countries that don't have a free trade agreement with the U.S. The authorization is conditional on winning final approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. But Sen. Lisa Murkowski says it’s a big boon for the project to bring North Slope natural gas to market.
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For $1B Radar, It’s Clear
The Missile Defense Agency today confirmed Clear Air Station as its preferred location for a new type of radar system, called Long Range Discrimination Radar. The selection of Clear helps solidify Alaska’s role as host to the ground-based mid-course missile defense system, designed primarily to shoot down warheads from North Korea.
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Y-K’s Facebook Phenom Helps Kick Off Arctic Council Chairmanship
A Tooksook Bay teenager who became a singing sensation on Facebook performed for ambassadors and Arctic VIPs at the State Department in Washington D.C. last night. Byron Nicholai was introduced by Secretary of State John Kerry at a reception to mark the beginning of the U.S. Chairmanship of the Arctic Council.
Sen. Sullivan: Prepare for Long War
U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan is one of five freshmen on the Senate Armed Services committee, and he’s carving out a place for himself among the national security hawks. Today, as the committee heard from two architects of the 2007 surge in Iraq, Sullian said the president should prepare Americans for prolonged war and win their support for ongoing combat.
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White House Says Veto Likely on Young’s Fisheries Bill
The U.S. House this evening began debate on a bill by Alaska Congressman Don Young to renew the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the nation’s primary fishing law. Actually, lawmakers just debated how they’re going to debate the legislation. Meanwhile, the White House yesterday issued a policy statement criticizing Young’s bill, suggesting the president would veto it.
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Murkowski, Cantwell Bill Pushes For Icebreakers
U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell of Washington and Lisa Murkowski have introduced a bill that would allow the Coast Guard to build as many as six heavy icebreakers.
Murkowski: OCS Revenue-Sharing is ‘Simple Fairness’
Sen. Lisa Murkowski wants Alaska to get a share of the federal revenues from oil and gas development off Alaska’s shores. Alaska’s congressional delegation has tried before, but this time Murkowski hopes to harness the support of other coastal senators. The idea proved controversial at an Energy Committee hearing Tuesday morning.
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US House votes to maintain current USCG spending levels
The U.S. House has passed a bill to keep the Coast Guard operating at the current spending level.
Rep. Young Riles Indian Country With Hearings on ‘Land in Trust’ Powers
The Interior Secretary’s power to take land into trust for tribes could create pockets of Indian Country across Alaska. Tribes see it as an opportunity to police their own territory and improve village safety. Others see it as the reservation model that Alaskans rejected in the land claims settlement act 44 years ago. Outside the state, land-into-trust is controversial, too.
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UAF Gets a Federal Boost for Unmanned Aircraft
The FAA last week named University of Alaska Fairbanks a “Center of Excellence” for research on unmanned aircraft. UAF and partner universities are charged with helping the FAA figure out how to integrate the unmanned machines in the national airspace. It’s still not clear if much federal money will follow.
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FCC Investigates Bid Discounts for Doyon-Owned Firm
The Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission said Tuesday morning the FCC is ready to investigate how a company partly owned by Fairbanks-based Doyon won licenses to use the wireless spectrum, while claiming it was entitled to billions of dollars in discounts. Critics say Doyon’s big corporate partner, Dish Network, is taking advantage of a program meant to help small businesses. Doyon says the program worked exactly as intended.
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Shell Gets Conditional Approval For Arctic Drilling
Shell has gotten another green light for its oil exploration season in the Chukchi Sea this summer.
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Alaska WWII Vet Enjoys Bird’s Eye View of D.C. Flyover
Alaska Bush pilot Urban Rahoi, a homesteader, lodge owner and Fairbanks businessman, had a ride in a World War II-era B-17 as it flew over the National Mall today. Nice day, he says, but he wanted to be at the controls.
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Russian Fish Called ‘Alaska Pollock’: OK By FDA
If you’re in a supermarket and see a product labeled “Alaska Pollock,” it could well be Russian-caught pollock. And the FDA considers that perfectly legal.
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Sen. Sullivan Lashes Out At Refuge Management He Calls Illegal
Sen. Dan Sullivan pummels the head of U.S. Fish & Wildlife over management of the Arctic Refuge. Sullivan claims the feds are violating the law by managing areas as wilderness without congressional approval. Not so, says the refuge manager.
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